Geneva International Open Results: Espen Returns to Take Double Gold With 80% Submission Rate
The European Champion returned to competition and has big plans for the upcoming season.
For the third occasion in the history of the organization, the IBJJF revisited Geneva, Switzerland, hosting the 2023 Geneva International Open. The tournament unfolded at the Centre Sportif du Bois des Frères on Saturday, November 11th, showcasing competition in both the gi and no-gi divisions.
One of the highlights of the event was the return of 2022 European Champion Espen Mathiesen. Espen took on the middleweight and open class divisions in Geneva, recording an impressive tally of five victories and four submissions. He commented on his return and his plans for 2024.
“I haven’t competed since Worlds, so it felt great to be back on the mats again this weekend. It has also been long since I have done open weight, so it was a fun challenge, and I’m very happy how it all went. I had in total five matches and four of them were won by submission. My plan now is to prepare well for the upcoming season, and go for gold at both Europeans and Worlds. I will also try to compete as much as possible in between them.”
Scarlett Liljefors of Dynamix Fighting Sports was the female absolute champion. She had one match in the division, finishing her opponent with a choke from the back. The no-gi absolute champion was Matheus Rangel of CheckMat, who went 3-0 on the day. Matheus won two matches at middleweight and then defeated his only opponent in the open class to take double gold.
2023 Geneva Open team results:
1. Icon Jiu-Jitsu Team
2. Karkara BJJ
3. Cicero Costha Europe
2023 Geneva No-Gi Open team results:
1. Icon Jiu-Jitsu Team
2. CheckMat
3. Karkara BJJ
